User Conference to Highlight New Direction

The second annual ARTS Users’ meeting, scheduled for September 12-14 in Orlando, will highlight the organization’s new mission statement, emphasizing direct support for
the retail business through information technology.

The mission of the Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS) is to develop best practices, technology standards and educational programs through collaboration and partnerships that will enable retailers, their vendors and suppliers to conduct business globally. ARTS standards, products and programs are dedicated to fostering innovation, improving shopper experiences and increasing retailer efficiency.

Business managers in all areas of retail operations can relate to processes designed and managed to achieve business objectives, but a data model is a bit foreign to most. The major new ARTS direction is to document the business processes and then relate them to the IT-provided support. For example, the process for accepting merchandise returns is supported by the POS application that guides the sales associate through the different policies based on maximum amount to be returned in cash and whether a receipt is present.

Peter Burrows, a longtime member of the ARTS board and CIO emeritus of adidas Group, will make the opening presentation at the Users’ meeting, discussing the value of process documentation in enabling effective communication between the business and IT, the use of technologies like SOA and cloud computing and identifying those business processes supported by ARTS standards. It was Burrows who championed ARTS’ development of process documentation based on its successful use at adidas, where he now leads the company’s Enterprise Architecture initiative.

Lynn Myers, chair of the ARTS Data Model committee and data architect for Lowe’s, will discuss how processes are linked to data and must be managed by the business to ensure accuracy of information. He will review the Lowe’s data governance program and use of the ARTS Data Model as a foundation for data design.

Experts who played significant roles in developing associated ARTS standards and whitepapers will lead roundtable discussions on other hot industry topics. If you are interested in SOA, cloud computing, payments, PCI and/or mobile commerce, this is the opportunity to learn from open discussion of successes and challenges among like-minded peers.

As implementation of cloud computing in retail continues to expand, ARTS is preparing a mini-RFP to guide selection of cloud-related applications and services, ensuring IT can deliver on the promises of lower costs and increased business flexibility.

Payments- and PCI-related security provisions remain a focus of retailers, which is why ARTS, in cooperation with Brussels-based Electronic Protocols Application Software (EPAS), is working to standardize cashless payment transactions and remove the payment process from the POS application. This standard will be global, facilitate mobile, increase security and limit PCI-required certification, a boon to retail financial executives.

Another highlight of the User meeting will be multiple sessions discussing the recently released Mobile Blueprint, with the emphasis on selecting the right marketing and m-commerce processes for your business and implementing them easily and securely. Mobile is all about creating convenience for your customers to strengthen relationships (and thus sales) while creating more efficient processes like providing store and item location, accurate product information and mobile self checkout. Guide your mobile experience in the right direction by reviewing the Blueprint at www.nrf.com/mobile and attending the ARTS User meeting. For more information or to register, visit www.nrf-arts.org.

As further proof that ARTS is moving in a new business direction, the word “integration” is nowhere to be found in this article, while “process” or “processes” can be found throughout. ARTS will continue to develop and maintain our technical standards as we extend direct support to the retail business functions.